CHAPTER 3;

I went to bed last night with a mind full of queries. My sister has been acting very strangely ever since she saw the librarian’s locket. When I questioned her look of recognition, she quickly pushed it aside and told me to return it as soon as possible. What exactly did she see in the picture? Who is it did she recognize?

I slid into a pair of sandals hastily as I made my way to the front porch, where Soo Hyeon was already seated in the car, ready for school. I climbed into the car and mumbled a brief apology before our chauffeur sped off. Chewing on a granola bar I grabbed from the kitchen, I noticed that Soo Hyeon was silently typing away on her laptop and occasionally, started smiling at her screen.

“What are you grinning at?” I craned my neck, trying to take a peek at her laptop

“I just met the most amazing person on itwriters.com!” she said, referring to the schools’ online portal for writers to carry out discussions

“Amazing? How so?”

“I was having a writer’s block and he just helped me overcome it. On top of that, he gave me ideas for the rest of the story and it was as if we are telepathic, we share similar thoughts about the plot!”

“Since when were you amazed by such coincidences? Don’t you only care about coincidental outfits, coordinated nail colors, and twinning accessories like your girl-friends? Oh look, you have 1053 more followers on Instagram than your little sister! Aren’t you glad?”

Soo Hyeon slammed her laptop close with so much force, I was almost certain that it was going to break. “Did you actually think I wanted to be friends with them? Did you actually think I enjoy being popular? If you did then well, you are wrong! What do you understand at all about me? Nothing! If you want my life that bad, take it! Take my friends, take my followers, take them all!”

“Could you at least be grateful for what you have? For all your friends that would have your back, for all the love you receive from Appa & Umma in place of me! What do YOU understand of ME?” I scoffed

“What a joke! Look behind their masks, Jung En! Do you know how ignorant you are and how ridiculous you sound right now?” Soo Hyeon got out of the car, slamming the door and stormed into school while I sat in the car alone, fuming.

If I was told I only had one day left to live, I would spend the day in physics class because a minute here feels like an eternity. And when the day is finally over, I would be really glad to die. I stared blankly at the whiteboard as the teacher scribbled some foreign equations and formulas. My stomach let out a little growl and my mind started wandering off about what I’ll eat for lunch and how I’ll get to see my eye candy at the dining hall, oh yes, I have to return the locket!

“Jung En?”

“Ah YES professor?” I snapped out of my daydream

“That’s right, it is indeed true that the body B will exert the same amount of force in the opposite direction of body A in this case since they are action-reaction pairs. Thank you Jung En.”

I wiped away the beads of perspiration on my forehead with the back of my hand, with eyes still wide in apprehension. That was a very close shave. I heaved a sigh of relieve and went back to jotting down notes, silently praying that the lunch bell will sound soon. My prayers were answered soon enough minutes later as the bell rang, indicating the end of lesson. I quickly packed my notes away and headed out of the classroom. I decided to look for the librarian to return the locket first despite being extremely hungry in case it slips out of my mind again.

Cool air rushed against my skin as I stepped into the library. Unlike usual days and exam periods, the library today was rather empty. I had no problem looking for the librarian as such, having found him almost right away on a stray bench, head down resting on his arms. I sat down as silently as could next to him, in fear of waking him up. With his spectacles off, his nose seems more prominent and sharp, his eyelashes so delicate and long, that it seems possibly to spark of jealousy in girls. He looks almost handsome and attractive. I laid my head down on my arms as well, wondering how much more sleep would he take to wake up. Soon enough, the cool air put me into a drowsy state. My eyelids felt so heavy and it was not long before I gave up trying to keep my eyes open, and fell into a deep and peaceful sleep.

I woke up much later, feeling really refreshed. Reaching my arms out for a good stretch, I felt something slipped off my shoulders. I turned back and picked up a navy blue jacket with our school crest embossed on the front part and the words ‘Student Council Kris Wu’ embroidered at the back. All of the sudden, I was reminded of why I was in the library. The space beside me was however was empty, he must have already left. I groaned in frustration and was about to leave when I noticed a sandwich on the table with a piece of note taped on it.

‘Sorry, I had to leave for something urgent. You probably slept through your break so here’s a sandwich. If you want to return me my jacket, I’ll be in the student council room after school. – Kris’

Glancing at my watch, I released it was only 7 minutes before my next lesson! Indeed, I slept through my break and I was extremely grateful for that sandwich to curb my severe hunger. I grabbed the jacket and sprinted in the direction of the classroom as I devoured the sandwich.

The day ended quickly with just two periods of my preferred subjects after lunch. Rain drops pelted down on the classroom window creating a cacophony with the chatter of my classmates. Heading out of the class, I hoped the rain will cease by the time I’m done with returning the librarian Kris his belongings. It took me a good 10 minutes of walking around the campus along the white-washed corridors and arduous climbing of stairs to find the student council room. I stood outside contemplating if I should knock or just walk it and wondering if Kris would be alone in there. Annoyed at my own indecisiveness, I knocked briefly and gently pushed open the door. The sight right in front of eyes was enough to make the books in my arms scatter on the floor.

“You’re here!” Kris waved, as eleven other gorgeous pairs of eyes turned to look in my direction.